Silence
by Maverick14th
Summary: Ichigo has been sick lately but how bad is it? And how will his friends and Soul Society react when they find out? What is going to happen to Ichigo? R
1. Chapter 1

New story, New story, New story, New story, New story

This is my first strictly Bleach fanfic, instead of my two Harry Potter Bleach crossovers. I feel excited.

Not sure how to categorize this one. I guess it's angst. Or tragedy? I have no clue. I'll just put something in and I'll change the genre later if people tell me what category it falls under.

Its emotional. Because I don't do fluffy happy stories. Not sure why. Maybe because I'm a serious person.

So, the story. I just randomly got his idea. I started writing it out but then I stopped and thought of another idea. Then I combined them. I think it will work out quite well.

Yay for emotional crap! I don't know why I'm good at it! But it works so let's just go with it!

So yeah... I don't own Bleach! Hope you like it.

Also! This takes place in some weird period after Ichigo got his powers back after Aizen but doesn't include the events of the most recent Bleach chapters.

* * *

Ichigo stared at the solemn face of Ryuuken Ishida, then to the side at the look of horror on his own father's face. "I have what?" He deadpanned, not wanting to believe what the doctor was telling him.

"You have lung cancer." Was the straight reply, his blank face failing to hide the sadness in his eyes.

"Can it be treated?" The substitute-shinigami choked. There was no way he had _cancer_. He was only eighteen!

"I'm afraid not. It is the final stage, any treatment would be useless." The older man explained softly, depressed at the state of the young man, who certainly didn't deserve such a fate.

"How long do I have?"

"A few months at the most."

Isshin let out a strangled sob and Ichigo looked at him with sad eyes.

"And at the least?" It almost killed him to ask, but he needed to know what to expect from his disease.

"Two weeks." Ryuuken couldn't look at the student anymore, his eyes darkening before he shut them, brow furrowing from the pained look on the boy's face. For he was just that, a boy. For all others treated Kurosaki Ichigo, he was only eighteen. He was eighteen and dying. He would not even live long enough to graduate high school. The thought of a boy, the same age as his son, having his life cut so short was crippling. He had to deal with death on a regular basis as part of his career, but it always killed him when it happened to the young.

Isshin stared at his son, his beautiful, powerful, selfless, caring, kind son. Isshin thought his heart was going to die, looking at the despair that nestled deep into his son's beautiful chocolate brown eyes as the realization sunk in. He felt tears begin to fall down his face but he didn't care, this situation was completely justified to cry over. His son, who had done so much for Soul Society and the Living World, was having his life ripped away from him by an inescapable enemy, disease.

Isshin had noticed that his son had not been well for a while, but had not thought it was so bad. Had seen Ichigo fighting or coming back from a fight, coughing harshly. A few weeks ago he had noticed his son coughing blood for hours after being thrown into a building by a hollow. He had tried to let him examine him, but Ichigo just waved him off, assuring him that he was fine. He had continued to worry until he had received a call from Ichigo's school, saying he had collapsed during gym. He had rushed over, only to be told that Ichigo had had a coughing fit during the mile and had collapsed, coughing up blood. The nurse was incredibly worried, explaining that Ichigo had been frequenting the infirmary lately but had made her promise to not call Isshin. When Ichigo regained consciousness Isshin had rushed him off to Ryuuken's hospital to get a medical exam. Ichigo had objected at first, until he had begun to cough hard, sounding like he was coughing his lungs out, and had trouble breathing in the hospital waiting room.

And now this.

Isshin wanted to fight Ryuuken's words. He wanted to say that Ichigo could beat this. But he was a doctor too; he knew there was no escape once cancer entered the final stage.

Ichigo sucked in a shuddering breath, his eyes screwed shut, and both the older men in the room felt depression weigh in them. His brown eyes snapped open and a pained smile stretched over his face, which made the men feel even worse, Ichigo was trying to make them feel better, he was trying to make it look like he was fine. "Well," his tone an attempt at being lighthearted, and failing miserably by the dull look in his eyes, "I don't want anyone to know."

"Ichigo…" Isshin attempted, knowing his son would not be doing himself any favors by hiding his condition.

Ichigo's eyes turned hard despite the fact that there was less fire in his eyes, "No. I don't want people worrying over me. I won't tell them unless they figure it out themselves. Don't tell anyone. At least not until….."

Ryuuken cringed at the strangled last word and nodded; knowing Uryuu would be mad at him when he found out his father knew and didn't tell him. He would respect the boy's wishes; he would not have many more before…. He snapped out of that thought, not wanting to finish it.

Isshin still wanted to object but the dim fire in his son's eyes made him nod silently, he would do as his son wished, even if he knew it would crush his daughters when they found out. Ichigo was always the one protecting others and hated being treated like he was weak, even if he now was. "Alright, but you'll have to take it easy on your Soul reaper duties, you will make it worse if you fight."

Ichigo grit his teeth but nodded stiffly, knowing his father had a point. He would try, but he wouldn't let it stop him if his friends were in danger.

The Kurosaki's left the hospital after Ryuuken gave Ichigo some pills that would help with the coughing fits and the pain. Ryuuken took Isshin aside for a moment, "Make sure you watch him Kurosaki, the final stage is incredibly painful, make sure he takes his medicine even if he says he's fine. He'll put up a tough front but he needs to be on the medication if he's going to live longer. Look out for him and try to keep him from strenuous activities; it'll just aggravate his lungs." Isshin just nodded and walked home with his son, keeping his eyes on the tall boy the whole way.

* * *

There were no further incidents for three weeks, which made Isshin think that his son would be alright for longer than Ryuuken had said. He managed to hide his condition from his friends and sisters, not even Urahara or the visiting shinigami caught on.

Ichigo was walking home with Uryu from school when he suddenly stopped, gripping the front of his shirt as he started coughing harshly. Uryu was at his side instantly when he leant up against the wall lining the road, staring into his face to try and see what was wrong. Ichigo forcibly paused in his coughing fit and gasped, "Get my dad," before he was once again busy trying to clear his lungs.

Uryu was off like a shot, heading straight for the Kurosaki Clinic and using Hirenkyaku despite the fact that people might see him, Ichigo's coughing did not seem healthy at all, it made him feel like it demanded attention as soon as possible. He slammed the door to the clinic open and Isshin looked up, startled. He was alone, which was a bit odd to Uryu, but he just slumped, trying to catch his breath.

"What is it Uryu?" Isshin's voice was concerned, as befitting a doctor, but it turned painfully serious when Uryuu gasped out, "Ichigo." Isshin snatched a small bag and a bottle of water sitting on a counter and raced past the panting Quincy, heading directly for Ichigo.

Uryu was concerned when they reached the substitute to see him on the ground coughing blood onto the road. Isshin grabbed his son by the shoulders and propped him up so he was sitting upright, leaning onto his father's shoulder. The older man pulled a bottle out of the bag and wrenched the cap off, shaking two pills into Ichigo's open palm, handing him the water once he tossed the white pills into his mouth.

Isshin looked over his son's face, worried as he managed to get his breathing under control. Then he turned to Uryu who was watching the pair of them with a suspicious look on his face and concern in his eyes.

Ichigo wiped the blood off his mouth and swallowed, "Thanks, that was a bad one. Haven't had one in a while so I thought I'd be alright without my meds."

"Stupid son, you're supposed to take them every day to prevent fits." Isshin scolded, worry layering his every word.

"Sorry," Ichigo just mumbled before he noticed Uryu standing over them. He sighed and got to his feet, his father steadying him when he staggered, feeling lightheaded. "Thanks for getting my old man Uryu, I owe you one."

Now the archer frowned, "No, you owe me an explanation. Why are you on medication? What do you mean it's been a while since you've coughed like that? What is wrong with you?"

Ichigo cringed, "Yeah I guess you do deserve to know. Just not here alright?" He walked back to the clinic, leaning heavily on his father every time he felt dizzy.

Uryu watched as Isshin helped his son into a chair as if he would break before taking a seat himself. "So."

Ichigo glanced at his father and sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to escape this explanation with the Quincy, "I'm on medication because I'm sick. Real sick. The meds are supposed to help, but I haven't been taking them the last few days since I thought I didn't need them."

"Sick?"

Ichigo nodded, a resigned look on his face, which didn't suit the headstrong soul reaper at all, Uryu didn't like it. "I have lung cancer. We didn't catch it until it was too late for treatment. The meds are supposed to prevent my coughing fits."

Uryu frowned, unable to wrap his head around the idea of the fiery substitute having a life threatening disease. "How long…?" Wanting to know how long he had known, and therefore been hiding it from them.

Ichigo smiled, but there was no happiness in it, and his eyes darkened, "A few weeks. Almost a month now. I've lasted longer than the minimum estimate, which is good I guess…"

"Minimum?"

"I'm in the last stage of the cancer. It can't be treated. I only got an estimate of how long the doctors think I have left." His smile turned wry and Uryu felt a pressure on his chest.

"An estimate?" Not wanting to know how long his classmate had left but needing to know anyway.

"A few months at the most. The minimum was two weeks, which I have thankfully passed." Ichigo attempted a pleased smile, but it twisted into a grimace as pain flashed across his face and his body curled up, his arms wrapping around his sides. Uryu could see the teen's teeth clenched so hard a muscle in his jaw stood out and he realized Ichigo was trying to hold in his cries.

Isshin laid a hand on the teen's shoulder for a moment before he looked up at Uryu, "I think it's time for you to go home, you can ask your father for more details, he was the one who diagnosed Ichigo." Isshin did not wait for the boy to respond, guiding him outside and shutting the doors to the clinic and locking the door, turning to 'open' sign over to 'closed.'

Uryu stood still for a moment, trying to digest what he had just been told. Ichigo had cancer. Final stage cancer. Ichigo was _dying_. Only eighteen and dying. With only a few months left. His rival was dying, not even likely to live long enough to graduate. A boy with near god-level power was slowing dying, his incredible reiatsu useless in the face of an opponent impossible to fight, disease.

Kurosaki Ichigo would not die in battle like the warrior he was, he would die in a bed, coughing his lungs out as he lay helpless to do anything. The fact that the spirited, powerfully kind boy would die no matter what anyone did almost made him collapse, his legs grown suddenly weak under his realization. It wasn't fair. It wasn't _fair_ that someone so powerful and selfless and self-sacrificing wasn't going to be able to graduate, wouldn't be able to grow up, go to college, get married, have a family, grow old and die a peaceful death like he so deserved. He was having his life ripped away prematurely, cruelly. Uryu hated whatever God had done this to his rival, his friend; making him have such a fate after all he had done for not only the Living World, but Soul Society as well.

He used a wall to support himself until he could stand on his own and headed for his father's hospital, intent on getting answers.

* * *

The next week went by slowly. Uryu would watch Ichigo like a hawk if they were in the same place and would refuse to give an explanation to their friends as to why he was doing such a thing. Ichigo had only smirked faintly when they asked him if he had done anything to warrant being watched and said, "It's just Uryu being himself."

Their friends didn't believe him of course, watching the two of them as well, trying to figure out what had caused the change in the Quincy's behavior. They had not found anything out so far, but were curious when Ichigo sat out for Gym class all week, telling them he "wasn't feeling well," which only caused Ishida's head to snap towards him and drag him off, demanding questions the whole way. Ishida had actually sat out with Ichigo a few days, sitting with him as he asked the orange haired boy questions in a whisper.

Then Ichigo had missed school on Monday, his father calling in sick for him, and Ishida had been tense all day.

When Ichigo had failed to return to school on Tuesday, his friends thought it odd, but dismissed it as a mild sickness and were sure he would be back tomorrow.

Wednesday came and Ichigo was still absent. Ishida was even more tense, and actually fidgeted throughout his last few classes before racing out once the first chimes of the dismissal bell rang. The others thought it strange, but did not connect Ishida's weird behavior with Ichigo's absence.

The fourth day Ichigo missed school; his friends thought something was wrong. Ichigo never missed school this long, unless he had been seriously injured in a fight, but since Ichigo had not fought any hollows recently there was no reason for him to miss school for so long. Ichigo rarely got sick, and when he did he got over it unnaturally fast. Tatsuki had years of stories of her oldest friend getting over sicknesses that left others bedridden for weeks in a few days. She couldn't remember the last time Ichigo had been out for more than a day or two. Ishida had actually left while their homeroom teacher had been in the middle of reminders for tomorrow, going past the dismissal bell, and had ignored the woman when she yelled for him to get back to the classroom. She had raced into the hallway to make him return to his seat but he had already disappeared. Their friends were suspicious now, they would make Ishida fess up when he was at school tomorrow, they decided.

It was Friday now and Ichigo was still out. Ishida paled when homeroom started and the orangette was still missing. His friends noticed and exchanged slightly concerned glances. Ishida had been tense the past few days, but had not been so obviously worried. That Ishida had looked pointedly at Ichigo's seat and had such a reaction made them begin to worry, maybe something was wrong with Ichigo? They tried to turn their attention back to the lesson but found their eyes straying back to the tensed back of Ishida and the vacant seat of Ichigo.

They cornered him when he was about to escape to eat his lunch alone, something he had been doing since Ichigo's absence. He glared defiantly at them for a moment before noticing their stubborn faces. "Come with me after school. I'm visiting Kurosaki anyway, you might as well come." He pushed past them with a tired sigh and vanished for the lunch period, leaving his friends to exchange confused looks.

They were quiet the rest of the day, even Keigo strangely silent from the resigned look on Ishida's face. The Quincy was unnaturally quiet and the tired look in his eyes told them something was wrong. That it was related to Ichigo just made them even more curious, since the archer made it clear his usual dislike of the Subsitute soul reaper, and was now clearly disturbed at something to do with the boy.

He waited impatiently for them at the dismissal bell, actually shifting his weight from one foot to the other as he practically demanded them to hurry up with his eyes. He spun on his heel as they gathered in front of him and led the way down the street at a brisk pace, not looking behind him to see if they were following. The others exchanged worried looks, what could be wrong that Ishida was practically rushing to get to it?

He came to a stop in front of the Kurosaki Clinic and glanced behind him for the first time since they left school, a warning in his eyes, before he rang the doorbell of the house. Muffled voices passed through the door before it opened, revealing Yuzu. The little girl let them in, not even greeting them, before she rushed back deeper into the house. Ishida took his shoes off hurriedly and followed her, the others rushing to do the same. They stopped in the living room, where Karin was sitting on the couch, her eyes red and her hands clenched in her lap. "So they finally figured it out huh?" the girl asked, her voice hoarse.

Ishida shook his head, "No, they just noticed I was acting off."

Karin scoffed before scowling at the others, though it was weakened by the red rims around her eyes and the fact that her lower lip was beginning to tremble. Ishida placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and the black haired twin looked down at her hands. He then turned and headed up the stairs to the bedrooms without a look at his other friends.

The others were terribly confused as they followed Ishida. Yuzu was acting very out of character, very quiet and not at all like the friendly, bubbly little girl they all knew her as. Karin was angry at them for some reason and had been crying. And what was that about them finding something out? Ishida clearly knew something major that they did not. They each mused at what it could be when Ishida passed through Ichigo's bedroom door without hesitating. The others stopped before the doorway, few of them actually having been there before, and surprised at how easily Ishida entered his rival's room. They entered as quiet voices reached them, Ishida's voice sounding terribly concerned and almost guilty, they couldn't make out the responding voice.

The sight that met them made them stop in their tracks, gasping in shock.

Ichigo lay in his bed, propped up by several pillows under his torso, blankets covering his legs. Ichigo looked like _hell_; his skin was almost transparent it was so pale, his usually vibrant orange hair was limp and hung over his eyes, he looked thinner than he had been a week ago, his face pinched and his cheekbones more prominent, his usually warm chocolate eyes were sunken and dull.

He laughed at something Ishida had said, a weak, pathetic sound, before he started to cough harshly. The coughing continued for over a minute and Ichigo gripped his side with one arm, the other hand pressed firmly to his mouth as he tried to control it.

Ishida looked worriedly at Ichigo and grabbed his hand once the coughing passed, looking down at his palm and furrowing his brows worriedly. The others by the door noticed something dark in his hand and the coppery scent of blood was in the air. Chad frowned and came forward to stand over his friend, "Ichigo…" He rumbled worriedly, now that he could see the blood the Quincy was wiping off Ichigo's hand.

Ichigo gave him a ghost of a smile, a pained stretch of lips that held little amusement. "Sup Chad? How have you been?"

"Fine, everyone's fine. What happened to you? You missed school for a week." The large half Mexican murmured worriedly, taking in his friend's condition with dark eyes hidden behind thick hair.

Ichigo scowled, "Yeah, I'm not exactly in the shape to go to school," He chuckled, as if there was something funny about his condition, "As you can see."

"What happened?" Keigo burst out, his face pale at the condition of his friend registered. He had never seen Ichigo like this, never seen him looking close to weak, Ichigo was always incredibly strong in his eyes and anything else was unheard of.

Ichigo sighed and even that sounded weak, "I'm sick, real sick Keigo. I can't go to school anymore. Sorry, I won't be able to play with you anymore." He did smile that time, a smile full of pain and remorse.

Mizuiro shook his head, dismissing the idea of Ichigo not being able to go to school; he couldn't be _that_ sick could he? "What do you mean Ichigo? What's wrong with you?"

"I have cancer."

The room went dead silent as the visitors stared at their friend. The silence came to an abrupt end when the window shot open, revealing the dark forms of Rukia and Renji. The soul reapers stared at the prone form on the bed, not fully realizing who it was, before they jumped into the room and turned to face the group.

"Ichigo?" Rukia murmured, almost to herself. "What happened to you?" That was a demand, a rather loud one.

Uryu turned to face the petite shinigami and glared down at her, "Please quiet down, the last thing Ichigo needs is loud visitors. If you wish to question him, do it at a reasonable volume."

Rukia stared at the Quincy for a moment, stunned that he would be defending Ichigo, before she turned back to Ichigo, who had not made a move to get out of bed.

Ichigo gave them a wry upturning of his lips, "Nice to see you too Rukia, though I think I'll see you sooner than I planned. Permanently."

"What do you mean Ichigo?" Renji questioned, his voice muted compared to its usual brashness.

"I'm dying." He deadpanned, making everyone but Ishida flinch.

"What? That's impossible!" Rukia and Renji burst out. Several of the humans mirrored their statements, shock written on all of their faces.

Ichigo did not retort, as almost all of them expected, but quietly nodded his head. "Yeah. I have lung cancer. It's in the final stage, so there's no avoiding it. I likely won't last rest of the month."

The defeated tone he spoke of his illness with made the others flinch, never wanting to have to hear that tone from him. Ichigo was a fighter, that he was being defeated by something he couldn't even try to fight against was unfathomable.

"I can.." Orihime offered, not wishing for her friend and crush to fall victim to such an unfair opponent, sickness.

Ichigo just shook his head, "No you can't Inoue. Your abilities wouldn't work on my disease; it's too far gone to do anything."

Orihime flinched and looked at the floor guiltily.

"It's not your fault. I didn't catch it until a month or so ago. I've lasted longer than I expected to anyway."

The door opened to reveal Isshin, who just looked around the room before his gaze settled on the shinigami, "You might as well tell the Soutaicho about this. He'd be finding out soon enough, given the fact that Ichigo's reiatsu has been decreasing steadily for the past few weeks." The pair startled before they even realized the man was right. They paused, unsure of what to do, before Isshin gestured to the window for them to do as he suggested now. The glanced back at Ichigo once before they left and he waved a little at them, a tired smile on his face. When they were gone Isshin came up to his son's bedside and took the chair next to it, placing a hand on Ichigo's forehead for a moment before he placed a few pills into his son's waiting hand and a bottle of water once he had thrown them into his mouth. Ichigo gave his father a grateful smile and dropped back into the pillows, his eyes immediately drooping.

Ishida and Isshin ushered the rest out of the room and shut the door quietly, leaving Ichigo to sleep in peace. They were silent as they went downstairs and were met with the incredibly sad eyes of Yuzu. She noticed the stunned looks on their faces and her eyes began to well up with tears before her twin grabbed her and led her over to the couch so they could sit and comfort each other.

"He really is sick, isn't he." Tatsuki said. It wasn't a question. She tried to wrap her head around the fact that her oldest friend was dying at eighteen. That the boy she had known as a crybaby when he was young was going to leave the Living world and make so many people cry at his departure. She couldn't imagine how the others who knew Ichigo would respond. It was too sudden. Too unexpected.

"Yes. He has been sick for a while but it has gotten much worse." Isshin answered quietly.

"How long has it been this bad?" That was Keigo, very resigned from the thought of his friend leaving them.

"I didn't learn of it until a month and a half ago. He didn't let me examine him when he was looking ill a month before that. I finally dragged him to the hospital when he passed out in gym." Isshin closed his eyes, brow furrowed in anguish.

"I remember that day. The teacher took him to the nurse but she never told him what was wrong. Ichigo didn't go to classes the rest of the day and wouldn't tell us what was wrong." Chad murmured quietly.

Ishida nodded, "I didn't find out until two weeks ago when he collapsed on the way home from school."

"And now his condition has taken a bad turn." Isshin stated quietly, so that his daughters wouldn't hear, "The girls finally found out when he couldn't get down the stairs without help. That was on Sunday, by Tuesday he didn't have the strength to leave his bed. Uryu has been coming over and helping as much as he can but it's not easy, he hasn't been improving. I'm afraid of what might happen if his condition continues to worsen."

They were silent at that. Ichigo already looked so weak and he was coughing up blood, what would happen if he got worse? They didn't want to think too deeply about it and said their goodbyes to Isshin and the girls before leaving. They separated to their homes as they left the Kurosaki home, depression weighing on all of them in different magnitudes. They tried not to think of what it would be like without Ichigo, but their thoughts kept straying back to their friend lying weak in his bed, unable to move without assistance. They turned to their families with heavier hearts.

* * *

**Soul** Society

The captains and lieutenants were quiet as they waited for the Captain Commander. Rukia (who had been promoted to the lieutenant of the 13th division several months ago) and Renji were busy staring at the floor, their captains watching them curiously; wondering what caused their abnormal behavior. Both lieutenants had spoken to their captains and requested for them to arrange a captains meeting but would not tell them why, only that it was very important. The captains had shrugged and put in a request to the Soutaicho. And here they were.

The Captain Commander walked in at that moment and started the meeting with a rap of his cane. He turned to eye Byakuya and Ukitake, "Now what is the reason for you two to request a captains meeting?"

Byakuya turned a cold eye on Renji, "My lieutenant came to me and asked that I put in a request for a captains meeting."

Ukitake nodded, "Mine as well."

The Soutaicho turned to the two lieutenants, who were still focused on the floor, "Well? What is the need for this meeting?"

They looked up and exchanged looks before they came around the lines of captains and lieutenants to stand opposite of the Soutaicho in front of the door. Rukia stepped forward, "When we visited the Living World a few days ago we visited Ichigo. He was not well and he told us that he was very sick and that he would be seeing us permanently soon."

There was genuine worry in Ukitake's eyes as he looked at the sadness on his lieutenant's face, "Sick? How is he sick? Can Orihime not help him?"

Renji shook his head, a touch angrily, and frustration was clear in his voice, "No. He said the sickness was too far along for her powers to do anything. He said he won't likely live longer than a month. He has cancer."

"He can't even get out of bed and he looks so weak," Rukia added, cutting the dead silence of the room, "He's thin and pale, I don't even think he can sit up without help, he was propped up with pillows when we saw him. And his reiatsu is so weak, it's so fragile and there is so much less of it than usual. I've never seen him like that." She trailed off sadly as her eyes darkened.

The room was silent as its occupants tried to absorb the fact that the substitute was going to die, in such a pathetic condition. It was hardly fair, a cruel end to such a strong and vibrant boy. He wasn't even going to graduate from human school. Someone so strong was being cut down by such a heartless opponent, disease.

The silence was immediately broken when the shrill noise of a phone rang out. Kurotsuchi reached down and yanked out his device, growling, "What is it?" rudely.

His face blanked and he looked up at the Soutaicho with an odd expression on his painted face.

"What is it Kurotsuchi?" The old shinigami grumbled, the news of the subsitute's fate leaving him in a bad mood. He did not particularly care for the boy, but he did feel pity for him, death by disease is an almost insulting way for a warrior to die.

"The devices monitoring reiatsu activity of Karakura Town picked up unusual activity a few moments ago. There was a large spike of reiatsu before it died down completely and disappeared. The reiatsu signature matches that of Subsiture Shinigami Kurosaki Ichigo." No one in the room moved, "Kurosaki Ichigo is dead."

* * *

DUN DUN DUUUUUUUUNNNNNNNNNN

Hah. I be evil. I don't know what is with me and killing off the main character. This is the second fic where I do that. Of course the first was a suicide but still...

Working on the next chapter already. well, not really. I'm THINKING about the next chapter. Haven't written anything yet cause I just finished this one!

But yeah, got finals next week... Not looking forward to it. But strangely enough i might be writing more, to lower some of the stress from studying.

Okay so... this chapter is done and I'm leaving now. Review please!


	2. Chapter 2

**I updated! Yay for you all! Yeah this chapter is a whole lot shorter than the first but I got bored. At least I updated.**

**Thanks for everyone who liked the first chapter. I'm liking this story so it makes me happy that others like it too.  
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**So, yeah. Like the first line says, the first part is happening at the same time as the last part of last chapter. It's what happens in Karakura while the Captains meeting is going on (obviously).  
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**I'm having a lot of fun being all mysterious and cliffhangy (Yes Funkegirl I know I'm terrible, hope this chapter helps). Sorry, I'm evil like that. I like torturing people.  
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**Those of you who are wondering what pairing I had planned for Ichigo? Not straight ones. I don't know why I hate straight pairings. I'm weird like that. But yeah, it'll be IchigoxByakuya. Because I like that pairing and it fits for this story. Kind of. Sort of. I'm sort of writing the story around the fact that I want to write a ByaIchi fanfic. I've never done one before so let's see how this goes. I'm no where near as good as Tango Dancer (who I ADORE by the way. P.S thanks for reviewing I love your stories also. If you haven't read their stories you totally should they're AMAZING) but I shall try my best. I'm not so good at the whole romance thing. All my romances are sort of twisted and there is usually a healthy amount of angst involved.  
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**Anyways... back to the story. I own nothing but my deranged mind. So no suing please.  
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**blueorgray1236 you will like this chapter. Not saying anything else.**

**Enjoy the story. ENJOY IT.  
**

* * *

**Karakura Town** (this happens at the same time as the last part of last chapter)

Ms. Ochi stood in front of her homeroom class with a solemn expression which was so rare that the students immediately quieted to see what she had to say, "I have an announcement," She paused, not sure how it would be taken, "Kurosaki Ichigo's father has withdrawn him from school because of health issues. I have been told that it is unlikely he will return to school, he is apparently very ill."

The class immediately broke out into whispers, even more so when the other students saw the sad looks on the faces of the group who were friends with Ichigo. His friends were silent, but there was pain in their faces and they refused to tell anyone just what was wrong with their loud friend. It was strange that the orange haired boy would be so sick; he usually never missed school, other than the odd times when he and Ishida, Chad, and Orihime would all be absent. But he had been withdrawn from school, not just absent, so it must have been something serious. It had been weird that Ichigo had missed school all of last week and this Monday as well and some of the class remembered Ichigo's sudden visit to the health room when he had collapsed in gym. They thought the incident must be related to Ichigo's withdrawal from school but didn't know how they were connected since his friends refused to say anything about it.

The rest of the day was relatively quiet; lunch period was rowdy when those in other classes heard about the orange haired boy's withdrawal from school due to health issues, and the group took refuge at their usual place on the roof.

During the last class a heavy pressure was in the air. It didn't last long, only for a few seconds before it was gone, but it left the students out of breath and confused. The group of Ichigo's friends however, had paled dramatically and exchanged worried looks before they ran out of the classroom together, ignoring the shout from their teacher for leaving before the bell.

Uryu lead the way out of school towards the Kurosaki home. He had been the first to feel the sudden spike in Ichigo's reiatsu, had felt it climb upwards before suddenly dying down to nonexistence. He used Hirenkyaku, not caring that the others couldn't use it, and raced on ahead. It was too soon, it had only been 5 days since the others found out about Ichigo's terminal disease, he had known longer than the others but he still wasn't ready for the vibrant teen's departure.

He burst into the house just to be met with the sound of crying. Ichigo's sisters were curled up together on the couch, crying their eyes out. Karin was trying to prevent herself from bawling like her sister, but the tears still flowed uninhibited down her face. She didn't even look up when Uryu raced past her and up the stairs. He vaguely heard the others enter the house after him and pause when they saw the girls, heard their gasps when they realized just why the girls were crying. Then they were racing up after him but he stopped paying attention to them when he made it through Ichigo's door. He stopped just inside the doorway and stared at the two figures in the room, one slumped in the chair beside the bed and the other in the bed, painfully still.

He heard Orihime's choked sob when the others made it up the stairs to stand behind him. He didn't need to turn around to know that Orihime was crying into Tatsuki's shoulder while tears ran down the tomboy's face. Didn't need to look to know that Chad's eyes were screwed shut with a pained frown on his face. To see that Keigo wasn't even breathing and Mizuiro was simply staring at the form on the bed, not able to believe what his eyes were relaying to him.

Ichigo lay on his bed, his eyes closed and chest still. His face was relaxed, his customary scowl missing from his face and brows unfurrowed. His face was pale, even more so than it had been on Friday, and there was a hint of blood at the corner of his mouth. His stillness was the worst thing, Ichigo had always been impatient, he couldn't be still if his life depended on it, to see him completely unmoving was horrible. It was almost as bad as the thought that he would never move again.

Uryu wrenched his eyes away from the body of his rival and looked around, searching for his soul form. He scowled when he couldn't sense Ichigo's reiatsu and Isshin turned from his son's body, so much pain and loss in his eyes, "I sent him to Soul Society already. I couldn't let him stay; his soul was reacting strangely so I performed _konso_ on him. Hopefully his soul is faring better in Rokungai."

"What do you mean his soul was reacting strange?" Uryu demanded, he'd thought they'd at least be able to see Ichigo before he left for Soul Society for who knows how long.

Isshin's brow was furrowed and he wouldn't look at the friends of his late son, he just stared at the floor between his feet, "He still had some of his symptoms even in his soul form, I thought if I sent him to a high-reishi environment it would help."

Uryu wondered how Ichigo still had symptoms after his death, and if being in Soul Society would help at all. They would have to wait for Sereitei to contact them before they found out if he was still ill when they found him.

The room was silent; the only sounds Orihime's sobs. Isshin finally looked up at the friends of his only son and sighed, "I think it's time for you guys to go home. I'll contact you later about the funeral."

No one could find it in them to refuse the man and filed down the stairs, offering him apologetic looks before they left the house. Left to return to their homes to mourn and left the Kurosaki family to mourn and try and pull themselves together, one member smaller.

* * *

**Soul Society**

The meeting room was silent as the Captains and Vice Captains registered what Kurotsuchi had just said.

Then Kurotsuchi's phone went off again and he snapped it open with another impatient, "What?"

The attention of every person in the room was wholly focused on the painted face man as it blanked once again before a gleeful look flashed in his eyes.

"What is it Captain Kurotsuchi?" Yamamoto demanded, knowing full well that the scientist would keep the information to himself if it benefitted him, which, considering his past interest in studying the human-visored hybrid, was very likely.

The twelfth captain frowned at him as he put the phone away but _tch_ed and answered, "Reiasu signatures matching those of Kurosaki Ichigo have been detected in the Rokungai in an uninhabited area with heavy forestry. The reading is very unstable and seems to be shifting somehow, minor fluctuations unlike that of shinigami, hollow, or visored. The fluctuations are becoming more rapid every second and it matches nothing in our databases."

Yamamoto paused briefly, wondering just what the different reiatsu mixed in with Kurosaki's own meant, but dismissed it as he ordered, "All available seated officers are to search for Kurosaki Ichigo immediately and bring him back when he is found."

"Can we get him for our squad if we find him first?" Kenpachi grinned, already looking forward to having the visored around permanently to spar with. If he was in the 11th he wouldn't be able to refuse a fight.

Yamamoto sighed softly at the 11th captain's antics, feeling slightly bad for the orange haired boy, "His decision will be his own. Dismissed!"

The room emptied almost instantaneously. The only ones left were Yamamoto and his lieutenant. The old captain returned to his chambers, already dreading the fuss that was going to be kicked up by the loud teenager's presence.

Rukia flash-stepped as fast as she possibly could, having received permission from her captain to go ahead while he returned to the 13th's barracks, only telling her to, "Bring Ichigo-kun for a visit." She had heartily agreed and ran next to Renji, who was only slightly behind his captain, as was only proper.

Byakuya turned a bit to look over his shoulder and sighed at the anticipating looks on his lieutenant's and sister's faces, "You may go ahead. Find Kurosaki first Abarai." The pair glanced at each other before they raced past him. He was taking a more leisurely pace, seeing no need to join the masses of people searching for the ex-substitute. He doubted the boy would be missing for long with so many people looking for him, so he would take his time. He wouldn't want to make people think he _cared_ about the teenager, just because their most recent interaction had been so much less antagonistic didn't mean anything. He had found that he had been briefly sympathetic when he heard that the boy was so ill, his mind immediately connecting him to his late wife, but the ex-substitute was so different than Hisana, he was loud, brash, selfless, and didn't care what anyone said about him as long as his loved ones were unharmed. He had been mulling over the boy's actions and passionate nature with less skepticism recently, but passed it off as his sister's influence, she was always going on about what the boy had done recently, whether hasty or just plain idiotic, and he had listened with some interest, if just to have more ammunition in the bickering that always happened between him and the teen.

He sent his reishi senses out, searching for the unforgettable spirit pressure of the boy, and tensed when he couldn't find it. He was now in the area Kurotsuchi had said the readings had come from, but there was no sign of the boy's pressure, only a slight lingering feel of the pure power that was Kurosaki's reiatsu.

He stopped in a clearing where a group of captains and lieutenants were, looking just as confused and alarmed as he felt. He looked over the head of his sister and saw what had made the others look alarmed; a pile of clothing, bloodstained and shredded, lying haphazardly in the center of the clearing with a pool of blood next to it. He could feel a slight amount of Kurosaki's reiatsu from the pile of clothes but the more dominant reiatsu in the clearing was unknown, it was not that of a hollow or a shinigami, it was some strange twist on both, with the reiatsu of something unhuman in it as well. Not unhuman like that of a shinigami or hollow, but something _else_, not anything like that of a normal soul.

"What has happened here?" His cold voice broke the quiet murmurs of conversation.

Rukia turned to her brother and swallowed, "We don't know. When we got here all that was left was his clothing and this strange reiatsu. There's no sign of Ichigo or….. a body."

Renji glanced at her before pointing to where Kurotsuchi was standing away from the others, ranting about something into his phone, "Kurotsuchi doesn't know what the reiatsu is either. It doesn't feel like Ichigo's, or really all that human. It doesn't even feel like a hollow, just something….. else."

He opened his mouth to continue when a harsh, grating sound broke through the clearing; it was low and promised violence. Everyone stilled at the growl, not knowing what to expect, but feeling an increase in the strange reiatsu. Something rustled in the deeper trees and the shinigami held their breaths as they waited for whatever it was to reveal itself.

The rustling stopped just out of sight and the clearing was completely silent. The shinigami almost relaxed, but they could still feel the unknown reiatsu just outside of the clearing and kept their attention focused in its direction.

The trees rustled and the source of the strange reiatsu emerged, pacing into the edge of the clearing. The shinigami stared at the creature, having no idea where this thing came from.

It was a wolf, which was odd enough in Rokungai since there were few animals at all much less wild ones, but it was in no way normal. It was easily six feet tall at the shoulder, possible even more since it towered over Kenpachi and even Komamura. It was pitch black with a strange blood red glint to its thick fur, and glowing orange eyes. Those blazing wild eyes scanned the various captains and lieutenants before the wolf raised its head to full height and growled again. The odd reiatsu increased, forcing the lower seated shinigami to lie prostrate on the ground and make some of the weaker lieutenants waver. It took a single step forward, travelling several feet in once stride, and lowered its head. With it further into the clearing the shinigami still on their feet could see the blood on the huge wolf's muzzle and it swept a long tongue out to lick its lips.

It took another step and halted, sniffing with its ears perked forward. It stood over the blooded remains of Kurosaki's clothing and looked down at the bloodied fabric before it licked its chops again.

That was when the shinigami were sure that this ….. beast was responsible for Kurosaki's disappearance. It must have killed him, and since there were no remains…. It must have eaten him as well, if the blood was any indicator. They did not think Kurosaki would be killed by an animal, even one as strange and apparently powerful as the monstrous wolf, but if it had gotten him off guard while he was getting accustomed to being a true soul in the Rokungai it was possible.

Kurotsuchi stepped towards the wolf, a hungry look in his eyes, he obviously wanted to experiment on the creature if not dissect it, but stopped at a warning sound. The wolf beast growled at the painted faced man, pulling back black lips from huge sharp teeth as the harsh sound rumbled up from its chest.

Renji stepped towards it from his side, thinking they could corner it, but the wolf swung instantly to fix him with blazing orange eyes. The unique reiatsu increased again until it was visible around the wolf, black and blood red and forcing the weakest lieutenants to their knees. The wolf's eyes narrowed and it took a single step back before it vanished with the painfully familiar sound of sonido.

_That_ got the shinigami's attention and they immediately searched the area for the beast. If it could use sonido it had to be a hollow of sorts, even though it had no mask to be seen. There was no sign of the beast in a several mile radius and the captains ordered their members back to Soul Society to report their findings.

Rukia was trying to think of what she was going to tell Ichigo's human friends when she saw them. What would they think when she told them Ichigo was killed by a giant wolf that used hollow techniques? She was not looking forward to her next visit to the Living World.

* * *

**Hahahahahahahahaahaahaaaa I be evil *cackles***

**Because I CAN.  
**

**Deal with it.  
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**I said there will be romance later on so keep in mind ICHIGO IS NOT DEAD.  
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**But where is he? Who knows. You'll have to wait for me to write more to find out.  
**

**I like how I intended this to be a two-shot and I'm definitely going to end up going past that. Oh well, I can deal with it.  
**

**So like? Not like? Tell me in REVIEWS please! And please no major flames? They hurt my feelings and make me feel bad about writing, which ends up taking forever for me to update anything.  
**

**No. Yes. Reviews. I actually have no exams tomorrow so I might write more of this. Or I'll update one of my other fics that I've been neglecting. Or just stare at Tango Dancer's page waiting impatiently for her to update or put up new stories. Because I am obsessed with her stories. Especially the BleachxHP fic Dawn of the Moonfang (Yeah I'm talking to you Tango. I've been waiting FOREVER for an update. You are seriously torturing me here).  
**

**I'm leaving now. Review please. Goodnight.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Updaaaaate!**

**Bet you're all glad now huh? Well ya should be. I finally managed to finish this chapter from what I had written months ago. At least I finished it.  
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**So yeah. New chapter. Great.  
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**Oh yeah, those of you who reviewed after last chapter that if I made this yaoi you'd stop reading? How nice for you, it isn't going to be. I decided against making this a romance around the same time that I realized this story was going to be longer than I expected. So yaoi-haters rejoice.  
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**Sad for those of you who wanted romance but sorry, not happening. I feel like this story doesn't need it, and I'd rather spend my time wracking my brain for more plot ideas for this story than trying to figure out how to insert romance. It's just easy for me. If I write a story with romance it has to be because I REALLY want there to be romance, and for this story I don't.  
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**But at least I updated. Which is good for you all.  
**

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING. If I did Bleach would probably not be as popular and I'd make it a yaoi, just cuz I COULD. Plus I'm not that good at writing to have a long term manga. Also can't draw so I got nothin.  
**

* * *

"What did you just say?!"

The collective shout emerged from more than one throat as Ichigo's human friends stood facing the huge screen showing Captain Ukitake, who had sent a request for Urahara to set up the communicator so that he could speak with Ichigo's friends.

"We believe Ichigo-kun was killed after he entered the Rokungai. The Soutaicho sent out the willing captains and vice captains to search for Ichigo-kun once he entered Soul Society but all they found was torn bloody clothing and no sign of him. After the party arrived at the point where Ichigo had been, a large wolf appeared. We have reason to believe the wolf may have killed and…. Eaten Ichigo."

The gathered humans and Urahara Yoruichi were shell-shocked. That Ichigo had been killed right after entering the afterlife was unlikely enough; that he was killed by some wild animal was even harder to believe. And that it _ate_ him? What the hell kind of animals lived in Soul Society?

"It _ate_ him? How big of a wolf could it be for it to eat a person without leaving any remains at all?" There was Ishida, taking the logical route while his friends were still speechless. Not that he wasn't shocked, he just hid it better.

"It was easily over six feet tall at the shoulder. It loomed over Captains Zaraki and Komamura with its head raised and looked like it was all muscle."

"But still, Ichigo wouldn't be taken down by some ordinary animal even if he was getting used to new surroundings!" Tatsuki defended her oldest friend, having known him best. There was _no_ way Ichigo would have been killed by a measly _wolf_, even if it was unnaturally large.

Ukitake sighed, he knew Ichigo's friends would have trouble believing him; they were as stubborn as he was. _Had been_ his mind reminded, the past tense making him grimace. "The wolf had considerable reiatsu, strong enough to bring several lieutenants to their knees even though it was foreign. It was some sort of strange mix of shinigami, hollow, and something else….. Completely different than an Arrancar or Vizored. There are no records of any similar reiatsu in any of the databanks so it is completely foreign. I have sent a sample of it to Urahara for your take on it; Kurotsuchi is still searching for the beast to 'study' it."

Ishida grimaced at the term 'study,' he knew full well what that term involved, since Kurotsuchi's favorite method of finding information out about something was by taking it apart.

"Hmm, very interesting…." Urahara murmured, making everyone in the room and Ukitake on the monitor turn to look at him.

"What is it Urahara-san?" Ukitake asked, hoping the ex-captain caught on to something, even though it wouldn't help Ichigo now. His heart still refused to believe the frightfully strong boy was not dead but even he was becoming disheartened from the lack of knowledge of the new beast, like if it was a friend or a foe.

The captain-turned-shopkeeper turned the reiatsu sample in his hands before he glanced at Yoruichi, who was standing next to him, "This is slightly similar to Yoruichi's reiatsu when she is in cat-form. It has the bestial reiatsu mixed in to it, but this one is much more wild and inconsistent. It also has the hollow tint to it, which warps it further, but it might be an individual who can change their shape like Yoruichi. Perhaps they cannot control their shift? Or they are not aware of their surroundings? It might even be a relatively young soul who is not in possession of their memories and do not know what is happening."

"So it might be someone who died recently?" Orihime said and they all thought of Ichigo.

"Could it be Ichigo-kun?" Ukitake was afraid to let him hope that the young boy might still live, if in a different form, just in case he was wrong and the boy was really gone.

"Hard to say, it doesn't _feel_ like him but the reiatsu is so warped it completely hides any individual reiatsu signatures."

Ukitake sighed, of course. "Well then there isn't any more we can find out without finding the beast. I am hesitant to allow it anywhere near people for their sakes."

"Has it attacked anyone? Did it attack one of the people in the search party?" Ishida wondered, if it was strong enough to injure one of the highest ranking shinigami in Sereitei there really was something to worry about.

Ukitake shook his head in the negative, "No it did not, it growled at Kurotsuchi and Abarai-kun when they got too close but then left the area and we couldn't follow it."

"You couldn't follow it?" Tatsuki questioned with a frown, "How is that possible?"

"It moved too fast for us to follow and by the time anyone tried to sense its reiatsu it was already out of range. It used Sonido." The thirteen squad captain was solemn as he finished, knowing what his last statement meant.

The trio who had been to Hueco Mundo with Ichigo flinched while the other humans who had only heard about the hollow technique from their friends looked confused. "So it obviously is part hollow if it can use Sonido. Did it use any other techniques? Like any shinigami ones?" Ishida asked.

"No it did not. It didn't stay longer than a minute at the most. It just showed itself, growled at anyone who tried to approach, and left. it's jaws were bloody and it was very close to where Ichigo-kun's torn clothing was found so it might have injured him, but there were no other traces of blood in the area so if Ichigo-kun was attacked and left the area, he was without clothes and there are no ways of tracking him, since his reiatsu disappeared moments after he entered Rokungai."

"So he might really be dead then," Ishida muttered.

Tatsuki immediately rounded on the Quincy, "How dare you say that! There's no way Ichigo would get himself killed by a _wolf_ of all things! He beat Aizen for Christ's sake!"

"His reiatsu is gone!" Ishida defended, "It's nowhere to be found in Sereitei and Ichigo doesn't know how to control his reiatsu! That means he's either dead or not in Soul Society and since no one's opened a Garganta or a Senkeimon there's no way he could be anywhere but there!" Even as he defended his theories with cold hard facts there were tears in his eyes, threatening to spill over even as he tried to stay composed.

"Enough Tatsuki-chan," Orihime surprisingly spoke up, her voice quiet and full of sadness, "If Sereitei can't find Kurosaki-kun then there isn't anything we can do." She choked on a sob at the thought of her friend truly gone for good. She owed him so much and now there was no way for her to possibly pay him back.

"We can go look for him." Chad rumbled, his voice uneven, showing how upset he really was even if his expression didn't change other than the fact that his jaw was tensed.

"What a wonderful idea!" Urahara chirped in an attempt at his usual jovial tone, but it was ruined by how empty it sounded. "I can set up the portal for you all after school is out for the week."

The humans exchanged looks, they wanted to go to Soul Society right away but knew that they had a responsibility to attend school, they were seniors after all.

They finally agreed and left for home, leaving Urahara to turn a suddenly serious face on Ukitake, who had watched the humans' reactions in silence. "What do you think this wolf is?"

The white haired captain just sighed, of course Urahara would cut straight to the point once no one could see him being serious, "I truly do not know, it is clearly powerful since it could bring lieutenant level shinigami to their knees. Shunsui was there, I was told to stay at my division because my condition had worsened recently, but he said it seemed like the beast wasn't even straining to release that much reiatsu, which means…."

"It has much more reiatsu than a lieutenant," Urahara finished, seeing Ukitake nod. "Where did it come from? There's no way something with so much reiatsu could hide for long."

"We don't know. Kurostuchi is very interested in it, saying it was some unknown breed of creature. There are no records of any such creature containing similar reiatsu in any of the records as I said before so we have no knowledge of what it may be. It seems likely that it is some creature that can shapeshift like Yoruichi, but that doesn't explain the hollow reiatsu."

Urahara scanned his notes on the reiatsu sample once more, "it seems like whatever it is has an equal amount of shinigami and hollow reiatsu, but the unknown reiatsu mixed in with it is warping the whole reiatsu signature so it's impossible to read."

"Could it be an Arrancar?" There was a bit of fear in Ukitake's voice, he had hoped they were done with dealing with the powerful Hollows.

"Not likely. If it was an Arrancar that somehow could change its form, it would have had to open a Garganta recently and there aren't any readings of one being opened since the ending of the Winter War. If it came through before the War was over it would have had to been hiding for over a year which is practically impossible, Hollows can't shield that well." He smiled a bit at the instant relief in the captain's face before he was serious again, "Just in case though, I think I'll accompany the kids to look for Ichigo. We wouldn't want anything to happen to them would we? Plus I can possibly get a firsthand look at whatever this is so we can deal with it. Hopefully we can find Kurosaki-kun."

* * *

Pain

_Painpainpainpainpainpainpain pain__**PAIN!**_

That was all the creature felt as soon as it opened its eyes to get its bearings. It had been surrounded by light after something hit its head. It wasn't sure what it was, it couldn't remember.

Then the pain hit. Centering in its chest, a burning sensation so strong it couldn't breathe. It was unable to move as the pain washed over it, running down its limbs and paralyzing it. It could feel its extremities twitching in the aftershocks of pain.

It thought it was over but then a second wave of unrelenting hurt washed over it, something in its chest tightening to the point no air was entering its lungs. It curled into a ball on the dirt ground, not caring about the rocks digging into its body, they were nothing compared to this crippling pain in its chest. Something wet and warm surged up its throat and expelled from its mouth, staining the dirt blood red. It continued to cough, expelling more of the liquid from its chest cavity.

It wasn't sure how long the tremors lasted once it stopped coughing, body tensing sharply before relaxing until the next tightening of strained muscles.

It scrabbled at the dirt, trying to right itself, but only fell back to the hard ground and decided to stay where it was, trying to gather its strength to try again later. It gasped as much air as it could into its ruined lungs, trying to slow its pulse. It wasn't sure how it knew its lungs had been damaged, it just could sort of tell, memories of pain and weakness all a blur at the back of its mind.

Just as it was pushing itself weakly to its feet it heard a rumbling sound. It whipped around to look around the clearing of trees it was in, searching for the source of the sound. There was no sign of any sort of movement of any kind. It was tense for several more minutes, holding still in case there was a threat nearby, before relaxing, assuming whatever it was had left.

Then the sound came back with a vengeance, snarling into its ears as if it was directly behind it. Turning sharply revealed nothing there, but now it was wary. It recognized the sound as something made by a canine, more specifically, a wolf. If there was one wolf around it knew there had to be more, wolves traveled in packs. It again didn't question where this knowledge came from, just accepted it and followed it.

Nothing again. No further sounds, no rustling that might give away the wolf's position. Nothing.

Then it felt a sharp pain in the back of its head and fell to the ground, front limbs tucked in close to its chest to try and stop the pain that had suddenly struck up again. It whimpered quietly, pushing down on its ribcage to try and minimize the pain. It did nothing to help.

A rushing sound filled its ears along with a vicious snarl before its entire body erupted in pain, feeling as if it was being torn apart, bones breaking and skin tearing, then everything faded to black.

* * *

The hollow snickered to itself, complementing its genius. It had found an excellent hunting ground, farther from Sereitei and therefore less populated with those blasted shinigami.

It was crouched on the flimsy roof of a building, staring down at the crowded souls passing in the streets below, searching for the best target. Currently it was in one of the farthest districts of the Rokungai. It wasn't sure what it was called but it apparently was about as far away from Sereitei as possible, perfect for hollows to hunt in.

Shinigami rarely came this far out so it was sure to be safe. It had come across a shinigami a few days ago but the weak fool escaped before it could strike. It was upset at the loss of a meal, since the souls this far out weren't very strong. The hollow figured quantity could make up for the lack of quality, so it was just bracing itself for the attack. It wanted to strike at the busiest time to eat as much as possible before it would have to move on to prevent shinigami from finding it.

It knew that the shinigami who escaped was likely to return with reinforcements so it had to make its move soon. It rose a bit off the roof to get a clearer view of the street but froze when a mournful howl split the air. The hollow ignored the worried whispers of the souls and focused on the sound, hollows didn't make that noise, it had to be some sort of animal. It had never seen any animals in the Rokungai, there were no places to hide in the plains of the district and no beast would be able to last long here, if it was a domestic animal, most of the souls were starved to some degree, there wasn't enough food available to waste it on measly animals.

It dismissed the animal as unimportant, seeing the souls beginning to withdraw from the streets, fleeing whatever sort of beast produced the sound. This would not do! The hollow dropped to the street and began its assault on the unsuspecting souls nearby, their screams music to its ears. It needed to hurry and eat as much as it could, it could already sense several strong reiatsus approaching from Sereitei, the reinforcements. It sensed a single powerful reiatsu signature coming from the opposite direction of the shinigami but the hollow had no idea what it was, no shinigami that's for sure, but then it disappeared without a trace and the hollow figured it was imagining things.

It turned back to snatch up a woman with one three-toed hand and her child with its other, but was suddenly rammed into on one side, making it drop the victims and fall to the ground harshly.

The hollow whipped around, its glowing yellow eyes widening at the sight of its attacker. A gigantic dog stood in front of it, pitch black fur rising in agitation. _Impossible!_ Was its only thought for the animal was easily the size of the surrounding buildings, which, granted, were kind of small, but stood at least seven or eight feet tall. The beast's gleaming orange eyes narrowed as lips pulled back to show sharp teeth. A harsh snarl burst from the beast's throat, a challenge.

There was no way it would let a mangy dog beat it even if it was abnormally huge! It shot to its feet and struck out, its hands gaining knife like claws that cleaved the air towards the dog. It stumbled a bit as they met nothing but air, the dog having shot backwards unnaturally fast. The hollow roared at being avoided and slashed out again. This time the dog grabbed one of its arms by the wrist and bit down, the sharp teeth sinking in with barely any resistance despite the hollow's thick skin.

The hollow shrieked when the dog jerked its head to one side and tore off the hollow's hand before licking its lips. It snarled another challenge that the hollow instantly responded to by ramming into the dog. They wrestled against each other, the hollow's teeth and claws barely scratching the dog's skin through the thick fur while the dog's fangs and sharp nails dug deep gashes in the hollow's hide, drawing streams of red blood. They separated with a clash of fangs and claws and paused for a second, taking in the condition of the other.

Before the hollow could react the dog shot forward with a buzzing sound. It could only twitch when sharp teeth drove into its neck and ripped out, tearing the white throat out. The last thing the hollow knew was sharp fangs ripping into its body while the shinigami finally arrived on the scene.

* * *

Kiyone Kotetsu paused in her constant arguing with her rival third seat Sentarō Kotsubaki to wonder what her precious captain was thinking assigning them to search South District 78 for strange reiatsu pressures. Before he had mentioned the part about reiatsu, she had thought their short mission had something to do with her new vice captain, since she and vice captain Abarai grew up there. But apparently not, so now she was stuck having to work with the buffoon of her co-third seat to try and find something releasing strange reiatsu that may or may not be present.

They were currently responding to a report of a hollow sighting in the nearby town and were on their way to deal with it when they sensed something wasn't right. Kiyone sent out her reiatsu senses to see if there was another source of reiatsu other than the hollow's. She had heard of course, about Winter War hero Kurosaki Ichigo dying in the Living World and then suddenly disappearing once he entered Rokungai, Kiyone dearly hoped they found him, since it was making her beloved captain rather depressed. She had heard from fukutaicho Kuchiki about the strange wolf-beast and was slightly curious, though she doubted that it really was a wolf, considering its apparent size.

She cut off her thoughts as she picked up on two reiatsu's nearby, heightened showing signs of a fight. One was familiar, that of a hollow, and a pretty strong one, for a normal hollow anyway, it wasn't even a menos though it seemed close to being that strong. The other reiatsu made her hesitate, it was completely foreign, some strange warped reiatsu that gave her a feeling of wrongness. It was a twisted, bestial reitsu, completely uncontrolled and incredibly wild.

She exchanged a look with her fellow third seat and, seeing the understanding in his eyes, nodded as they entered into shunpo together.

They were not prepared with what they were faced with when they arrived, they had sensed the hollow reiatsu drop rapidly but hadn't expected the reason for that to be a giant wolf _eating_ the hollow. The beast was _massive_; easily the size of the nearby houses even when it wasn't standing straight up, it had thick glossy black fur with a crimson sheen. They couldn't see the wolf's face since it was facing away from them and muzzle-deep in the carcass of the hollow but they could hear the cracking of bone and the tearing of flesh as the creature devoured the fallen soul.

If it weren't for their long service as shinigami, Kiyone was sure she would have been sick. The scent of blood was thick in the air and just the sounds of the wolf eating were making her a bit uneasy. Suddenly the sounds stopped and the wolf lifted its head away from the body, turning to face the third seats, ignoring the remainders of its meal disappear into spirit particles. Kiyone sensed her partner flinch even as she did so herself, those burning orange eyes were full of wild energy, the blood on its muzzle dripping down off its chin. Kiyone took an involuntary step back when the wolf turned its body to face them, lips soaked with blood drew back to reveal deadly sharp teeth stained with fresh blood.

Kiyone took a step forward, her hand inching its way towards the katana at her belt and felt Sentarō do the same when the wolf snarled, a vicious, terrifying sound that was enough to freeze the shinigami long enough for the wolf to move. And move it did, it flew towards them at a speed thought impossible for something other than a shinigami or a high ranked hollow, it moved too fast for either third seat to react and for a moment Kiyone was afraid they wouldn't make it back to their precious captain.

The wolf didn't slow down as it reached mere feet away, but it didn't open its jaws to attack either, it barreled straight through the small space left in between them, a space far too small for the wolf to pass without making contact.

Kiyone felt like she had just been thrown into a stone wall, the wolf's body did not feel soft like that of a living creature, it had no give when pressure was put against it; its body was completely hard, as if the wolf was a moving statue. She was sent flying to the side as the wolf passed, not even changing its direction once despite using such force to move Kiyone and Sentarō away.

Kiyone used the wall she had been thrown into as a crutch as she stood, looking to see where the wolf had gone and only seeing the faintest blur of black before it disappeared. Sentarō made his way over to her, brushing himself off from being tossed in the dirt, "We need to talk to the captain."

And Kiyone could only nod her agreement, what the heck was that wolf anyway?

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**Another chapter, another cliffhanger. I love being evil. *smirks***

******Have absolutely no idea for next chapter other than Ukitake talking to Urahara again and telling him the most recent information about the wolf. And I may or may not have something stop the humans from coming to Sereitei, I'm not sure yet. And I do plan on having another Captains meeting, maybe at the time I decide to have to wolf break into Sereitei, lets see how they deal with THAT.  
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******Reviews and suggestions are not only welcomed but strongly encouraged. I do love help, I really really do. I love feedback since it helps me write more since it tells me what you guys like about the story and what you'd like to see more of.  
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******So yes, reviews please! Tell me what you like, what you hate, and please refrain from the flames? They hurt my feelings and make me not want to write any more.  
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******Also! Shoutout to Tango Dancer! I know you read this fic! Why haven't I seen any updates from you recently? I'm waiting for my next chapter of Dawn of the Moonfang! I've been waiting for months! Gimme! *makes grabby hands*  
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******OK I'm done now. Reviews please! Hope you liked it! Other than the hatred from me leaving you with another cliffhanger. Ciao!  
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